South California Ave, Evergreen Park

It is not super fancy but it does have a pretty good array of choices in terms of dining options. Restaurants worth visiting here include Cafe Brioche (a French place great for Sunday brunch), Palo Alto Sol (a Mexican place), Mediterranean Wraps, Jade Palace and my favorite among them Baume. Baume is an amazing French restaurant right at the end of the street--by the Amtrak station. I think this is actually a Michelin grade restaurant. Last time I went I had the lamb, which I would highly recommend.

But it is not just about the restaurants, the bars aren’t too bad either--in specific I would recommend Antonio’s Nut House which believe it or not, is a true blue dive bar in the middle of Palo Alto. I know it is hard to believe, but if you step inside this place you can almost imagine a Charles Bukowski type sauntering in and making his way to the end of the bar. And, of course, everyone’s favorite, a sign in the men’s urinal that reads “Please Don’t Throw Cigarette Butts in the Urinal; I Makes Them Soggy and Hard to Relight.” (Don’t ask me how I know what the sign say in the men’s urinal.)

Of course, these are not the only places along North California Ave. You get the usual kind of places you might expect, like a chiropractor and massage therapist, an office supply place and an optometrist--basically the usual sorts of places that you need to get your daily work done.

Overall a pretty good spot--totally my fav in Palo Alto.